How a Vocal Cord Injury Brought Musician Bay Turner Closer to Christ

Published: June 12, 2024

How a Vocal Cord Injury Brought Musician Bay Turner Closer to Christ

By Movieguide® Contributor

Christian singer Bay Turner explained how a medically mandated break from music brought him closer to God.

In 2020, Turner was found to have a tumor in his chest. Thankfully, it was cancer-free, but the doctors still wanted to remove it.

“The anesthesiologist ended up damaging my vocal cord. The intubation ripped it and paralyzed the whole thing, so I came out of surgery with no voice, and a week goes by, and it’s hoarse. The second week goes by, and it’s even worse, and then a month goes by, and my voice is completely shot,” Turner told Movieguide®.

“So I went to an ENT and voice specialist doctor, and they said, ‘Yep, your vocal cord’s been messed with pretty badly…I don’t know if you’ll ever sing again, but I need you to go on total vocal rest,’” Turner continued. “So I went on vocal rest for some time… so me as a musician, my whole life I eat, sleep, breath music and to have to kind of put that away for a while was gut-wrenching. But it was in that silence when I had to really get quiet with myself and with the Lord and really wrestle with Him.”

While wrestling with the uncertainty of not knowing if he would ever be able to resume his music career, Turner began to realize that he was putting his identity in his work rather than in his faith in Christ.

“He met me there and began to show me and teach me the difference of who I am as a man of God from what I do,” Turner explained. “I’ve always been the singer in my family so to get to a place with the Lord where I feel totally satisfied and totally worthy as just a son of the most high was a really sweet place.”

Graciously, God gave Turner his voice back and he was able to launch his music career, largely by competing on Season 17 of AMERICA’S GOT TALENT. He recently released a new song “Brand New.”